TWC: You Rock! (And Latasha, you still suck.)
So I called my internet.cable/phone company in July to terminate my cable services, because:
a.) I can’t justify paying $35 per month when Netflix is $8. And
b.) I never watch it anyway.
Usually, I listen to Baroque or Big Band/Swing on the TV and that’s the most I have to do with it. The rep (back in July) that I spoke with, Iris, promised that she would “take care of me”. I’m not keen on special promos and ratings etc.- I simply don’t care much and so when she rebundled me, she swore that my rates would be lower and I’d be saving money in the long run. I still wanted to cancel my cable however ,so she snagged me by offering me a $300 Visa gift card that could be used anywhere. It’s not Monopoly money; it’s a real Visa. Ok. Sign me up! So she did.
But what she didn’t do is inform me that if I defaulted on my payment or was late even once, the deal would cancel itself out. Thanks Iris. So I waited. Weeks drew on and no Visa. I had called in to get a 6 day extension on my TWC account, which they gave me- which canceled out my Visa gift card. Guh.
Fast forward another month. Another round of phone calls to TWC (Time Warner Cable) and two reps and one supervisor later, I was told that my Visa would definitely be on its way. Still, they failed to tell me why it had been cancelled to begin with- they only made promises that the situation had been rectified. K.
Another month goes by- no Visa. Another round of phone calls and two reps later, another hollow promise of the elusive Visa gift card that had apparently been sucked into a big space of nothingness. Another month. Another round of phone calls- and still- no plausible explanation as to where the gift card was or why it continued going MIA! Maddening!
Last week, I spoke with a rep, Latasha, who was utterly useless and tacky to boot. I’m a former top rep and customer service is “my thing”. I know all about the top offers and sales tricks- I know every trick in the book- I speak the language. So, it’s really hard to get something over on me on the phone.. Still, I was left clueless and more frustrated with each phone call. I told Latasha how useless she was as a rep and manager because by now, it’s December and I’ve still got cable and have still been paying an additional $35 per month from trusting Iris.
I insisted that not only did I not get the $300 gift card, I now had spent an additional $200+ on cable that I didn’t want and had tried to cancel repeatedly. Latasha offered my a $45 credit to my account and offered to rebundle me for $120 per month- no dice. $45? That’s a joke! I told Latasha that I wouldn’t settle for anything less than $150- $200. Period.
We haggled tirelessly like two Marrakesh street vendors in the market place; she wouldn’t budge and neither would I. I asked to speak to her supervisor and asked for her supervisor’s name. I could actually hear Latasha laughing with her coworkers. Party foul. Totally unacceptable. The call didn’t end well.
I called right back, now in tears, and spoke with a different supervisor, Eric. Eric was awesome. By now, I was on a first name basis with most of TWC’s reps and Eric was super friendly who clued me in on what to do. Thanks Eric- you rock! Eric was able to put $45 back into my account- right off- and told me to wait a few days, and then call back and speak with customer solutions. They’re the ones who want to really keep you as a customer and are willing to wheel and deal (with $) in order to do just that. Sounded good to me!
So I did. I just got off the phone with TWC. Brian was the customer solutions rep I spoke with and he was just the best. Brian rebundled me so that my phone, internet and cable would be reduced to $93 per month- before taxes ($102 afterwards) and he would also increase our internet speed to “Extreme” at no additional charge- “it’s on the house”. But that’s not all! I told Brian that I would be willing to keep my cable if I could recoup some of my money that I’d lost over the past 6 months. (That was my bargaining chip and it worked.) Eric spoke with his supervisor and when he returned, he offered me a $150 credit back to my account. Ba tah bing! Triumph!
So then, in the past week alone, I’ve been able to recoup $200 back to my account and as it stands right now, I not only don’t have a bill at the moment, I have a $70 credit for next months bill, making my phone/internet/cable bill next month $30. That’s doable. 🙂 For whoever may be reading this, if you’re with TWC and you’ve payed your bill for 3 months consecutively without being late, you’re entitled to a $300 Visa gift card. It’s yours, and it’s your right as a customer to have that. So go on and getcha some!
The moral to this story is: never give up. Always fight for what’s yours!
And Latasha, you still suck.
m o n o c h r o m e j u n k i e † 
Love these success stories. But I’m glad you got it written down. It’s not over until it’s over!
December 8, 2014 at 8:47 pm
That’s right. 🙂
December 8, 2014 at 9:15 pm
way to go B!! I’ve got one of these situations to deal with and need to take notes. I am weary with battle. and this kind of stuff can be exhausting. Good to hear GOOD news!!! Congrats and party on!
xox
December 8, 2014 at 8:50 pm
Email on the way. 😉 (Thanks, by the way!)
December 8, 2014 at 9:15 pm
we have similar stuff happen here. so frustrating.
December 8, 2014 at 9:30 pm
Definitely!
December 8, 2014 at 9:38 pm
Atta Girl! I hate when it gets to that point, but you have to do what you have to do…
I fought my builder for over FIVE years to get a new roof installed on my house. Three years after I moved in, shingles began to fly off in moderate winds. I had so many insurance claims, the insurance company dropped me! And the out-of-pocket repair bills were draining me. I’d taken video of huge sections of the roof, literally, flapping in the breeze, and photos of the missing patches and the repairmen at work. When it got to the point where the builder was no longer returning my calls, e-mails, letters, I took my stand! I found out who the parent company (a Fortune 500 company) of my builder was and began a call and e-mail campaign to them for help. Same result – no response. In September of that year, I sent them an e-mail that, in essence, said: I have finally come up with a solution to this problem. I was gifted with the ability to construct fairly decent websites and what I’m going to be doing in the next week is creating one called “(Name withheld)Sucks.com. On this site, I’m going to post the MANY videos and photos of the shoddy workmanship that goes into the construction of your homes. AND copies of the documentation I saved to show how LONG it takes to deal with your company. AND copies of the money I was forced to spend to keep a roof over my head. AND documentation from my insurance company showing POTENTIAL FUTURE CUSTOMERS what they can expect if they purchase a home from you. Thanks for your interest in helping someone who just spent over $100,000 on one of your products…and I’ll see you on the internet!
ONE day after sending that, I received a call from the parent company’s Corporate VP of Operations, who came out the FOLLOWING day, got up on the roof for 5 minutes and said: “Complete tear-off…Entire roof…No charge.” And a crew of 8 showed up a week later and did as promised, even to the point of heat-sealing EVERY INDIVIDUAL shingle down. It turned out the original shingles were from a bad batch that had been recalled, but the builder used them anyway…completely unbeknownst to the parent company. I figure…parts and labor…they did well over $20,000 worth of work.
Threats aren’t always the way to go…but when you’re out of options, you have do what needs to be done.
December 9, 2014 at 11:31 am
Atta boy, C. :0) See, you and I think alike. I have two people who are on the “sucks.com” list at the moment. Yep. And it’s going to happen.
But like you said. it’s a shame that it has to get to that point at all, but darn it- if that’s what it takes for them to put their money where their mouth is- so be it, and good for you! Glad everything turned around for you. :0)
December 10, 2014 at 12:26 am
Thanks, Hon. :)) I had to do this once before, too…to a HUGE furniture and TV chain in our area. I made up a really nice flyer that outlined my problem and the company’s various responses…all in chronological order. I sent a copy to the CEO and told him that I’d be at all six of his stores – at various times – passing these out in the parking lots.
THAT issue was solved 3 days later. :))
December 10, 2014 at 8:33 am
Love it! You so speak my language. ..heheh…
December 10, 2014 at 4:47 pm